University Professor, Director; Center for Health and Risk Communication

I am a University Distinguished Professor of Communication and Director of the Center for Health and Risk Communication at George Mason University. I teach courses in Communication Research, Health Communication, Risk Communication, Interpersonal Communication, Organizational Communication, Consumer-Provider Health Communication, Health Communication Campaigns, and E-Health Communication.

My active research program has been funded by many federal agencies, foundations, and organization. I examine the influences of strategic evidence-based communication programs and practices on reducing health risks and enhancing health outcomes, with a focus on promoting health equity in society. I am an expert on community-based participatory research, health information dissemination, and the effective design and use of health information technologies. My frequently cited publications are reported in more than 450 books, articles, and chapters. I serve on the national FDA Risk Communication Advisory Committee and am a scientific adviser to the NIH, CDC, VA, HRSA, and many international health agencies, research firms, and foundations.

I've received a number of major research honors, including the Research Laureate Award from the American Academy of Health Behavior, the Outstanding Health Communication Scholar Award from both the International Communication Association and the National Communication Association (NCA), the Dale Brashers Mentorship Award from the NCA, the Gary Gumpert Urban Communication Research Award from the Urban Communication Foundation, the Health Communication Centennial Scholar Award from the Eastern Communication Association, the Pfizer Professorship in Clear Health Communication, the Lewis Donahue Outstanding Health Communication Scholar Award from the University of Kentucky, the Future of Health Technology Award, the Distinguished Achievement Award in Consumer Health Informatics and Online Health, and the Gerald M. Phillips Distinguished Applied Communication Scholar Award from the NCA.

Prior to joining the faculty at Mason, I had the pleasure of serving as the founding Chief of the Health Communication and Informatics Research Branch at the National Cancer Institute (NIH), where I planned, developed, and coordinated major new national research and outreach initiatives concerning risk communication, health promotion, behavior change, technology development, and information dissemination to promote effective cancer prevention, screening, control, care, and survivorship. I also served as the Founding Dean of the School of Communication at Hofstra University, Executive Director of the Greenspun School of Communication at UNLV, and in faculty and administrative roles at Northern Illinois, Rutgers, Indiana, and Purdue Universities.

For more detailed information about my career, research interests, and accomplishments, please view my CV.

Current Research

Developing and advising a cross-national research network of countries conducting the Health Information National Trends Survey (HINTS): The Global HINTS Research Program:

HINTS-USA funded by the National Cancer Institute (NIH)

HINTS-China funded by the Chinese Ministry of Health and the Chinese Food and Drug Administration

New international Global HINTS research sites are under development in Switzerland, the Netherlands, Greece, Poland, Romania, Bulgaria, Armenia, Peru, Israel, South Korea, Singapore, and Kenya.

Developing, field testing, and evaluating an evidence-based interactive curriculum for training interdisciplinary health care team members to communicate effectively in delivering care to immigrant populations in free clinics for the Advanced Nursing Education Workshop (ANEW) Program. This research and intervention program focuses on developing adaptive provider communication competencies for effective inter-professional communication, demonstrating cultural sensitivity, and working effectively with patients who have low levels of health literacy and limited English language proficiencies. This project is funded by the US Health Resources Services Administration (HRSA) and is being conducted in collaboration with faculty in the School of Nursing at George Mason University (2018-2019).

Evaluating and field testing best message strategies for communicating relevant health risk and benefit information to key public audiences across the US about current science and practices concerning genetically modified foods as part of the Agricultural Biotechnology Initiative. This research is funded by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the US Department of Agriculture (DOA) (2018-2019).

Established and co-direct the Global Advocacy Leadership Academy (GALA) research and intervention program to examine the health communication and information needs of health advocacy organization leaders and to develop evidence-based training programs for advocates around the globe (2014-present).

Advising the Partnership for a Healthier Fairfax community-based collaborative to evaluate health needs among vulnerable populations in Fairfax County, Virginia and to develop evidence-based programs and policies to promote healthy behaviors, tobacco and substance abuse control, good nutrition, and the reduction of health risks (2017-present).

Serving as a scientific adviser to the transdisciplinary Breast Cancer and the Environment Research Program, funded by the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIH), to identify environmental risk factors for breast cancer and to develop strategic public health information dissemination programs and policies to reduce breast cancer risks (2018-2019).

Rising, C.E., Bol, N., & Kreps, G.L. (2015). The effect of age on use and perceptions of e-health in men with prostate cancer: Results from a web-based survey. Journal of Medical Internet Research: Cancer, (1):e6, doi:10.2196/cancer.4128; available at: URL: http://www.jmir.org/2015/1/e6/

Kim, W., Kreps, G.L., & Shin, C-N. (2015). The role of social support and social networks in health information-seeking behavior among Korean Americans: A qualitative study.International Journal of Equity in Health, 14(40). DOI 10.1186/s12939-015-0169-8.

Senior Scientific Advisor and Research Consultant, Agricultural Biotechnology Initiative. This research is funded by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the US Department of Agriculture (DOA) (2018-2019).

Principal Investigator, Fiscal Year 2016, Proposal for Contract Training for the CDC University School of Public Health Education and Communication,” Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), 2016).

Courses Taught

399- Health Communication

400- Research Methods in Communication

600- Introduction to Graduate Studies

620- Health Communication

634- Interpersonal Communication Theory

635- Organizational Communication

705- Intercultural Health and Risk Communication

720- Consumer-Provided Health Communication

721- E-Health Communication

798- Communication Research Projects

820- Health Communication Campaigns

Education

Dr. Kreps received his BA and his MA degrees in Communication from the University of Colorado, Boulder and his PhD degree in Communication from the University of Southern California.

Recent Presentations

Digital Health Communication Research and Applications, Workshop presented at Jinan University, School of Journalism and Communication, Guangzhou, China, 2018.

Applications to Promote Public Health from the Global HINTS Research Program, Keynote Address presented at the HINTS-China Research Conference, Beijing, China, 2018.